Now that we are in
between Niños, it is important to go back to the 1997-98
occurrence to extract the experiences and lessons learned, and better
prepare ourselves for the next episode, which may once again bring loss
of life, the spread of disease, and damage to crops and the economy, affecting
the way of life of millions around the planet, particularly in developing
countries.

The impact of El Niño,
diffuse in time and space, affecting several countries in different ways,
is not as telegenic as an earthquake or a hurricane. Yet the duration,
extent, and magnitude of the last episode provoked an unprecedented institutional
response in the region, well worth documenting. El Niño longer
interests only physicists, meteorologists, and oceanographers, butincreasinglydecision-makers
and the general public.

This book serves as
a technical and institutional retrospective of the El Niño impact
on the health sector, and shows how the 1997-98 El Niño Southern
Oscillation (ENSO) deeply affected daily life and public health in most
of the countries of Latin America. It may be consulted (and downloaded)
in Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format at http://www.paho.org/spanish/ped/ElNino.htm

If you were impressed
by The Consequences of Disasters on Public Health, originally published
by Oxford University Press in 1997, and would like to share it with your
Spanish-speaking colleagues, PAHO has just made available the Spanish
translation of this important work.

Earthquakes, floods,
volcanic eruptions, tropical cyclones, fires, and many other types of
disasters have taken more than three million lives in the past 20 years
and affected the lives of 800 million others, causing over US$50 billion
dollars in damage to property and infrastructure. In the last decade alone,
the number of internal and external refugees due to war, famine, and drought
nearly doubled. Almost every day, a disaster takes place somewhere around
the globe. Population growth in flood plains, along vulnerable coastlines,
and near geological fault lines, as well as the rapid industrialization
of developing countries, will probably increase the threat of natural
and technological disasters in the coming years.

The book offers a
close look at the causes of disasters and their consequences for public
health, and aims to help improve disaster prevention, monitoring, and
response policies. It relies on epidemiology as a basic tool for disaster
analysis and control. The authorsalmost all of them officials of
the United States Centers for Disease Controltake advantage of their
many years experience to provide the reader with in-depth technical
descriptions of the main types of disasters, both natural and complex,
offering a variety of examples and the chief findings of epidemiological
surveys on the effects of disasters on public health. They pay special
attention to prevention and control measures, and offer recommendations
that public health officials will find highly useful.

This is an essential
work of reference for health professionals who must make decisions concerning
disaster preparedness, mitigation, and response, and in general for all
those interested in reducing the often devastating impact of disasters
on public health.

Natural Disasters: Protecting the Publics Health

This publication outlines
the health sectors role in reducing the impact of disasters, laying
out a framework that an administrator can rely on to make effective decisions
in managing the health sectors activities to reduce the consequences
of disasters.
It describes the overall effects of disasters on health, highlighting
myths and realities, and summarizes how the health sector must organize
itself to cope with disasters. The book emphasizes the multisectoral nature
of disaster preparedness and sets forth guidelines for preparing health-sector
disaster plans, means of coordination, and special technical programs
before a disaster strikes. It also includes ground-breaking information
on the management of supplies in a disaster.

The book is primarily
aimed at health sector professionals who participate in disaster preparedness,
response, and mitigation. Disaster management has become such an intersectoral
enterprise, however, that anyone interested in disaster mitigation will
find here a useful primer. Public health students and professors also
can rely on this book in formal and informal courses.

PAHO has just
released the English version of two important books addressing mental
health issues of disaster-affected populations: Mental Health Services
in Disasters: Instructors Guide and Mental Health Services
in Disasters: Manual for Humanitarian Workers. These publications
complement each other and are important tools in the training of
relief workers to respond effectively and thereby contribute to
reducing the social and psychological consequences of any disaster.